[gallery td_select_gallery_slide="slide" ids="39019,39018"] Saudi Gazette report RIYADH — A three-day literary festival with a focus on further bolstering Indo-Arab cultural exchange and a discourse on contemporary literature concluded here on Saturday. Honoring the renowned Arab writer and poet Dr. Shihab Ghanem was the major highlight of the festival titled "Wor(l)d beyond boundaries." Prominent expatriate writers and cultural figures from the southern Indian state of Kerala participated in the event, organized by the Riyadh Chilla Sargavedi as part of its first anniversary celebrations. Dr. Ghanem inaugurated the festival at Noor Al-Mas Auditorium on Thursday evening. The inaugural session was presided over by Noushad Kormath, coordinator of Chilla. Ghanem was honored with a ‘Lifetime Achievement Award' in recognition of his outstanding contributions to the Indo-Arab literary field as well as for his remarkable role in strengthening cultural bonds between India and the Gulf states. The award was given to him by K.R. Unnikrishnan, chief patron of Keli Art and Cultural Forum. Well-known writer from Kerala and Sahithya Academi Award winner E. Santhosh Kumar delivered the keynote speech. Noted writer PJJ Antony of Jubail, Hassan Cheruppa of Saudi Gazette, Rasheed Melethil, general secretary of Keli, and Chilla Advisory Board member Jayachandran Neruvambram spoke on the occasion. A resolution, expressing solidarity to the students of New Delhi's Jawaharlal Nehru University, was presented. Young singer and music director Hisham Abdul Wahab recited the poem called "Rathrimazha" (night rain) written by the renowned Indian poet Sugathakumari. The poem's Arabic translation "Matarullail," done by Dr. Ghanem, was recited by Jabir Ali. Subash recited the poem of O.N.V. Kurup, which was a tribute to Kurup, the most celebrated contemporary Malayalam poet who died two weeks ago. A drama based on a short story of renowned Indian novelist O.V. Vijayan was also staged. Keli President Mohamed Kunhu Vallikunnam, Chilla advisory members and writers Joseph Athirunkal, Najeem Kochukalunku, Balachandran, Rafeek Panniyankara, Dasthakeer, Dayanandan, Sabeena M. Sali, and Anitha Naseem also attended the session. Earlier, writer M. Faisal welcomed the gathering while T.R. Subramanyan, convener of Keli cultural wing, proposed the vote of thanks. Santhosh Kumar inaugurated the short story workshop, the first program of two-day-long camp on literature, books and reading held in Riyadh and Al-Kharj on Friday and Saturday. He spoke on the topic "Contemporary short story." PJJ Antony led the second session on "Expatriate literature." The short stories by writers from Riyadh — Joseph Athirunkal, Sabeena M. Sali, M. Faisal, Najeem Kochukalunku and Rafeeq Panniyankara — were presented. The stories were read by C.V. Manmohan, Jayachandran C, Abdullateef, Shihab, Nijas, Anitha Naseem, Darli Thomas and Premkumar. Sindhu Shaji, Satheesh Babu, Suresh, Faisal, Subash, and Anitha Naseem recited poems. Pictorial illustration and commentary of a literary work of Santhosh Kumar titled "Hills and Stars" by Nijas and T.R. Subramanyam gave a visual treat to the participants. An interaction of Dr. Ghanem with expatriate Indian writers and readers from various parts of the Kingdom was another highlight of the festival. While replying to questions from the participants, he spoke at length about the salient features and new trends of the modern Arab poetry, as well as his thrust on poems to promote harmony, peace and love, and his endeavor to further cement strong bonds between Indo-Arab culture and literature. Hassan Cheruppa was the moderator. Those who participated in the literary dialogue included R. Muraleedharan, Rasool Salam, Shakeela Wahab, Shameem Thalaprath, Sunil Kumar Elamkulam, Satheesh Babu, Manmohan C, Noufal Puvakkurishi, Iqbal Veliyamkode, Abdullateef, Vijay Kumar, Rahila Kafoor, Najma Noushad, Priya Santhosh and Shihab. Jayachandran Neruvambram was the moderator while M. Faisal, the camp director, reviewed the deliberations. The festival concluded in Al-Kharj with an outing to the desert. The participants shared their inexplicable experiences in reading many a classic work. There was also a literary appreciation session of the short stories and novels of Santhosh Kumar. "The festival, which gave a deep insight into the literary and cultural activities of Indian expatriates, was an exciting and novel experience," said Santhosh Kumar while PJJ Antony lauded the commendable initiative of Chilla to promote reading and writing among the expatriates. Keli, which has around 4,000 members, is the parent body of Chilla. "We have an ambitious plan to transform Chilla into the largest literary forum representing Indian expatriate writers and art lovers from all parts of Saudi Arabia irrespective of religious, political and other considerations," said Rasheed Melethil, general secretary of Keli. "The festival saw an overwhelming response from writers and lovers of literature among all segments of Indian expatriates in the Kingdom," said Kormath. He unveiled Chilla's plans to organize more similar literary and cultural events in future.
